Tag: Nehemiah

To Hear and Believe Anew

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Faith, Scripture, spirituality1 Comment

Thursday of the Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary Time
October 5, 2023

Today’s Readings:

https://bible.usccb.org/bible/readings/100523.cfm

Today, in God’s Lavish Mercy, our first reading comes from the pragmatical prophet Nehemiah. Compared to the lyrical works of writers like Isaiah and Jeremiah, Nehemiah and his buddy Ezra can sound pretty pedantic. But today’s passage is powerful, rendered so by the tears of Ezra’s listeners:

Then Nehemiah and Ezra the priest-scribe
and the Levites who were instructing the people
said to all the people:
“Today is holy to the LORD your God.
Do not be sad, and do not weep”–
for all the people were weeping as they heard the words of the law.
He said further: “Go, eat rich foods and drink sweet drinks,
and allot portions to those who had nothing prepared;
for today is holy to our LORD.

Nehemiah 8: 9-10

Why were these people crying? (besides the fact that they had stood for six hours listening to Ezra’s filibuster!!!)

Ezra Reads the Law – Julius Schnorr von Carolsfeld’

The people cried because they had restored to them something they thought was lost. Israel had been smothered in Babylon for seven decades – more than a lifetime in ancient Israel. Perhaps they had tried to hold on to the faith of their ancestors, but seventy years of remembering can become wearisome. Now, by God’s mercy, Jerusalem had been restored to them where they could stand in freedom to hear the Word that held them together. Notice that ALL the people were gathered, even the women and children, to be touched by the Word.

The whole people gathered as one in the open space before the Water Gate,
and they called upon Ezra the scribe
to bring forth the book of the law of Moses
which the LORD prescribed for Israel.

Nehemiah 8:1

Picturing the size and circumstances of Ezra’s large assembly, I was reminded of the first baseball game after 9/11/2001. Two weeks after that abominable day, Atlanta played the New York Mets at Citi Field, just a little over ten miles from the World Trade Center. The whole nation was brokenhearted, and certainly, all of us mourned deeply for the people of New York City. The video below recalls that game. There is a well of tears in every face — loss, hope, courage, gratitude, determination, and love for country. And I think even the Braves wanted the Mets to win!

This passage from Nehemiah comes at an opportune time for the Church as we gather in Rome to open the Synod on Synodality. Yesterday, Pope Francis convened representatives of the whole Church to hear the promptings of the Holy Spirit.

Many in the Church feel disoriented and disaffected by issues corroding the Church’s integrity. The continuing waves of the clerical abuse scandal have poisoned the waters of trust and devotion. The failure to recognize women as full human beings paralyzes half the Holy Spirit’s energy. Fractious, self-interested criticisms of papal authority, even by some bishops, have distracted the simple believer from a life of faith. The weaponizing of Catholic social media by the powerful against the marginalized dishonors and vitiates the Gospel in the public sector. Inadequacies in liturgical understanding, preaching, and pastoral leadership have alienated many cradle Catholics from pursuing Church membership.

Not unlike Ezra and Nehemiah, Pope Francis challenges the Church to hear the Word of God rekindled among us. For those who believe the Church is only the hierarchy, or the magisterium, this gathering may be a threat to a status quo which serves their interests. To those who see the Church as the whole people of God, the Synod may be a sacred tonic to a languishing Church.

We should all pray for the success of the Synod. When received with an open and honest heart, the Holy Spirit does astounding things within us. This synod can move the whole Church closer to its sacred perfection, but more specifically, it can do the same for you and me if we desire it. Let’s take Nehemiah’s words to heart, rejoicing and believing that God will delight in the Church’s invitation to speak to us anew:

Do not be saddened this day,
for rejoicing in the LORD must be your strength!”
And the Levites quieted all the people, saying,
“Hush, for today is holy, and you must not be saddened.”
Then all the people went to eat and drink,
to distribute portions, and to celebrate with great joy,
for they understood the words that had been expounded to them.

Nehemiah 8: 10-12

Music: Holy Spirit Living Breath of God – Keith and Kristyn Getty

The Word

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Discipleship, Eternal Life, Faith, GospelLeave a comment

Thursday of the Twenty-sixth Week in Ordinary Time

October 3, 2019

Click here for readings

Today, in Mercy, Ezra and Nehemiah gather all the People for a gargantuan spiritual renewal! It is the People themselves who request this renewal, realizing that they have drifted from the Law and desiring to ritualize their return to it.

It seems fitting that this reading comes just after the Jewish celebration of Rosh Hashana (from sundown on Sunday, September 29 until sundown on Tuesday, October 1, 2019.) This feast marks the beginning of the Jewish High Holy Days.

For more on these biblically rich celebrations, click here.

One of the lessons Christians can take from today’s passage is awareness of the great power and gift of God’s Word. Ezra’s community was changed by listening to that Word with open, repentant hearts.

word of God

In our Gospel, Jesus sends his disciples out to preach that Word, now transformed by the power of his Incarnation. He tells them to preach that “the Kingdom of God is at hand!”

Just this week, Pope Francis has taken steps to rekindle our appreciation of the Word. By declaring the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time as the Sunday of the Word of God, our Pope wants to help us grow in love and devotion to Sacred Scripture.

(Personally, I welcome this focus. At the time of the Second Vatican Council, there was a new and deepened awareness of the gift of Sacred Scripture. As a young religious, that awareness was central to my spiritual formation. Since that time, there seems to have been an unfortunate shift away from that emphasis. I see the Pope’s declaration as a welcome corrective to that shift.)

Pope Francis has designated the day “to the celebration, study and dissemination of the word of God “ so as to help the Church “experience anew how the risen Lord opens up for us the treasury of his word and enables us to proclaim its unfathomable riches before the world’.

May we gratefully respond!

(See below the music : If you are interested, I have copied a very good excerpt from Pope Francis Apostolic Letter.)

Music: We Come to Hear Your Word – Chris Jubilee

Below is an excerpt from the Pope’s Apostolic Letter APERUIT ILLIS -INSTITUTING THE SUNDAY OF THE WORD OF GOD. I found it to be helpful in understanding the Pope’s intent with this feast:

With this Letter, I wish to respond to the many requests I have received from the people of God that the entire Church celebrate, in unity of purpose, a Sunday of the Word of God. 

It is now common for the Christian community to set aside moments to reflect on the great importance of the word of God for everyday living. The various local Churches have undertaken a wealth of initiatives to make the sacred Scripture more accessible to believers, to increase their gratitude for so great a gift, and to help them to strive daily to embody and bear witness to its teachings.

The Second Vatican Council gave great impulse to the rediscovery of the word of God, thanks to its Dogmatic Constitution Dei Verbum, a document that deserves to be read and appropriated ever anew. The Constitution clearly expounds the nature of sacred Scripture, its transmission from generation to generation (Chapter II), its divine inspiration (Chapter III) embracing the Old and New Testaments (Chapters IV and V), and the importance of Scripture for the life of the Church (Chapter VI). 

To advance this teaching, Pope Benedict XVI convoked an Assembly of the Synod of Bishops in 2008 on “The Word of God in the Life and Mission of the Church”, and then issued the Apostolic Exhortation Verbum Domini, whose teaching remains fundamental for our communities.[1] That document emphasizes in particular the performative character of the Word of God, especially in the context of the liturgy, in which its distinctively sacramental character comes to the fore.[2]

It is fitting, then that the life of our people be constantly marked by this decisive relationship with the living word that the Lord never tires of speaking to his Bride, that she may grow in love and faithful witness.

Consequently, I hereby declare that the Third Sunday in Ordinary Time is to be devoted to the celebration, study and dissemination of the word of God. This Sunday of the Word of God will thus be a fitting part of that time of the year when we are encouraged to strengthen our bonds with the Jewish people and to pray for Christian unity. This is more than a temporal coincidence: the celebration of the Sunday of the Word of God has ecumenical value, since the Scriptures point out, for those who listen, the path to authentic and firm unity.

Let’s Start from Scratch

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Church, Community, Conversion, FaithLeave a comment

Memorial of the Holy Guardian Angels

October 2, 2019

Click here for readings

Today, in Mercy, our first reading brought to mind my “IKEA” days . We had just moved into our new convent, a real “fixer-upper”. Our meager furnishings consisted of some cast-offs from a closing convent and a few of IKEA’s befuddling “put-togethers”.

Ikea

I wasn’t bad at put-togethers, but neither was I perfect. (Neither were any of you who ever tried it. Don’t lie to me!) Sometimes my imperfection rose to the level that I just unassembled whatever sorry mess I had and started all over again – from scratch.

That’s what Nehemiah does in our first reading. He lived in Judean-Persia and had a good job with the Persian King who favored him. When Nehemiah realized how bad things were back in Jerusalem, he felt terrible. He asked the king to sponsor him on a rebuilding trip, and the amiable king agreed.

So Nehemiah went to Jerusalem and reordered things. Greed, dissension, and selfishness had infected the People. The elite rich were feeding off the labors of the poor. Any attempts at restoring the heart of the community were languishing under these infections.

Nehemiah, a faith-filled man, was also a great administrator. He designed a spiritual government with a stringent communitarian financial system. This allowed the Israelites to return to their Abrahamic character as a People who cared for one another rather than profited off one another.

Nehemiah accomplished great things for God’s People because of his clarity, simplicity and faith. That faith moved him to acknowledge that his success occurred because…

Neh2_8 favor hand

Today, on this feast of the Holy Guardian Angels, perhaps we will feel God’s loving touch in our lives through their ever-present direction. Perhaps there are dissonant systems within or around us that we are being called to name and reorder in God’s good grace as well.

Music:  By the Rivers of Babylon by Boney M. 
The song is based on today’s Responsorial Psalm 136. Even though the tone is jazzy, the song captures Israel’s longing for life as God intended it to be. “Babylon” = corrupted culture. We have our own longings for a return to a shared public life which honors God and nourishes the whole of Creation.

Boney M. is a Europe-Caribbean vocal group created by German record producer Frank Farian. Originally based in West Germany, the four original members of the group’s official line-up were Liz Mitchell and Marcia Barrett from Jamaica, Marie Williams, from Montserrat and Bobby Farrell, a performing-artist from Aruba.

Radicals for God

On By Renee Yann, RSMIn Conversion, Courage, Discipleship, Eternal Life, Faith, GospelLeave a comment

Memorial of Saint Pius of Pietrelcina, Priest

September 23, 2019

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Luke8_17 hiddenJPG

Today, in Mercy,  we’re dealing with a few names we might not be familiar with.

Pius of Pietrelcina whose Feast we celebrate. Ever heard of him?

Oh, wait a minute, maybe you have. This holy man is more popularly known as “Padre Pio”. Still no clue? How about this?

Padre Pio was a Capuchin Franciscan friar who has become one of the most popular saints in the Church. While it was his receiving of the stigmata that distinguished him for many, his real saintliness lay in his love for sinners and his work for their redemption.

Pope Paul VI said this shortly after Padre Pio’s death: “Look what fame he had, what a worldwide following gathered around him! But why? Because he was a philosopher? Because he was wise? Because he had resources at his disposal? No – because he said Mass humbly, heard confessions from dawn to dusk and was–it is not easy to say it–one who bore the wounds of our Lord. He was a man of prayer and suffering.”

Ezra is our other maybe unfamiliar character. His book in the Old Testament doesn’t get a lot of play. It’s only ten chapters and lacks the exultant poetry of an Isaiah or a Jeremiah.

But Ezra’s, and his buddy Nehemiah’s, contribution to Judeo-Christian spirituality are critically important. These two Hebrew leaders accompanied the People back to their Promised Land after the Babylonian Captivity. But more than that, they fostered and admonished the People to return to their original relationship with God – a relationship rooted in the Promise given to Abraham.

Luke, who gives us today’s Gospel, we know well. Even today’s passage, we might know by heart. Let your lamp shine.  Let your life be truth. Do we live that message?

All the individuals mentioned in today’s celebrations and readings were radicals. The Word and Promise of God were everything to them. Through all the challenges of their lives, they kept coming back to their immutable relationship with the God of Love and Fidelity. They kept inviting others into the circle of that faith.

Praying with them today, may we have the same strong and resolute hearts.

Music: Hymn of Promise – Hope Publishing